Fat Transfer/fat injections

[luls7]

Has anyone had that done under the eyes. I've read it's better than any of the artificial fillers, as it does not have adverse side effects. You're body absorbs about 40% of it from what I read, and the rest are relatively permanent (depending on the area). The under eye area is pretty good because there isn't a lot of movement. I would love a first hand account, if anyone has had it done.

[Ellen Prine]

I had under eye fat injections last October and now am going to undergo surgery to remove the lumps of fat that are there. They look much worse than the hollows that were there. I strongly recommend that you don't do this. While initially some of the fat does go away, the rest is permanent.

[luls7]

That's what I'm afraid of! Because it's your face. Do you happen to know what technique they used. The one I want is called: Transconjunctival Deep Lipotransfer. See technique described below. It's placed under the muscle to reduct possibility of lumpiness. Has anyone else out there had this?

Transconjunctival Deep Lipotransfer

With the revolutionary TDL technique, the eyelid surgery is safely performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia, thereby eliminating the cost of an outside surgery center and anesthesiologist and saving hundreds or thousands of dollars. "With TDL, I use a fraction of the medicine that would normally be used with traditional anesthesia," says Dr. Hoenig. His perfected technique does not allow the fat to get displaced and lumpy. It uses the patient's own tissue to prevent the chance of allergy or rejection, and the fat is not visible through the skin yielding dramatic, natural-looking results.

The technique of fat grafting or fat transfer surgery to add volume and contour to the face has been around for at least the last decade. Historically, many surgeons shied away from transferring fat to the eye area because of problems with fat reabsorption, shifting, and lumpiness. "After years of doing fat grafting surgery, I've discovered using the TDL technique that if I create a pocket for the fat and place it beneath the eyelid muscle, there is little chance of the fat shifting out of place or appearing uneven. Since there is relatively little muscle contraction in this area, the fat tends to last quite well," says Dr. Hoenig.

The TDL Procedure: Fat transfer surgery involves a mini-liposuction of the patient's own fat, usually taken from the abdomen or hips, careful preparation of the fat by spinning it in a centrifuge to separate the fat cells from the fluid, and then injection of the fat with a blunt needle and syringe into the desired locations. The procedure can be performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia and patients can usually return to work within a few days to a week, although swelling may take longer to subside. Since the fat, unlike other fillers, comes from the patient's own body, there is no chance of an allergic reaction. And by injecting through the inside of the eyelid, there are no external incisions and therefore, no scars to conceal.

[Ellen Prine]

I'm sorry but I don't know--I will see if I can find out.

[spy9doc]

I personally do NOT recommend fat transfer for anything, especially on the face. It is unpredictable insofar as reabsorption is concerned and has the tendency to form unsightly lumps. I also found the recovery to be more difficult than the proponents of fat transfer lead you to believe. As with any procedure, I'm sure there are those who have had it performed and are happy with the results, but personally I would not consider it given my past experiences.

Do a search on my posts and look for the thread PMMA Permanent Filler.
I just returned today from my second round of PMMA injections at Clinic Estetica in Tijuana and am thrilled with my results! I had face, hands and buttocks injected in both rounds. They can just treat one area of the face, or do something called a Face Refresh wherein they inject filler wherever is needed.

I am quite lean and have lost even more facial fat with aging, especially midface fat. I just looked old, drawn and tired. They did a Face Refresh for me wherein I had filler injected into my undereye hollows, my temples, my cheekbones, my cheeks, around my chin, jawline, lips, etc. They literally reshaped my entire face and it looks 10 years younger.

[Devora]

I had fat transfer in the hollow of my eyes recently, so I can't vouch for the results yet. I did a lot of research before I had it done though. There are new techniques for fat transfer that don't seem to have the side effects (lumps, etc.) of the old methods. There are only a handful of doctors using the newer methods. Go to http://www.cincyfacialplastics.com and read the article Volume Loss vs Gravity. My doctor was one of the researchers/writers and I really trust him.

[chami]

i had fat transfer in my hands,and the result was very good,but it only lasted about 2 months,so i could,nt possibly keep going back for top ups,as the expense is so prohibitive.

[DrRubinstein]

Fat transfer is a reliable technique that can achieve long lasting nice results. It is true that some of the fat will not survive the transfer process (up to 30% in some literature) but what does survive is a permanent result. Aging, however, never stops. Particularly in the face. So the fat which is transfered to the face continues to age as time goes by. This is also true of buttock augmentation. Also, if you gain or lose weight, the fat will get larger or smaller as well.

There is a post above about PMMA injections. I think it is very important to point out that this is NOT FDA approved and not available in the United States. While some patients may have nice results I would be very cautious about allowing substances that are not approved for use in this country to be injected into your face or body. There are many reports of bad complications using PMMA in the face and elsewhere. There is a reason it is not FDA approved, so why tempt fate by going to another country to have the injections. Again, you might be lucky and have nice results, but you might not. And the complications are not fun.

As for the lower eyelids, fat grafting has been difficult. It is not uncommon to have lumps and bumps in this area. I do not do fat grafting to the lower lids. Instead I use a technique called transposition of the fat pads. This is a method that uses the fat pads in the lower eyelids (which are usually excessive and causing bulges before surgery) and move them into a more useful position along the area under the lid. Frequently I will also remove some of the fat at the same time. This is in a very deep layer and will never appear lumpy. It also leaves the blood supply to the fat intact so survival is 100% unlike grafts. The technique that someone is quoting in an earlier post is using a similar idea and placing the fat grafts in this deeper layer. There is probably less lumpyness that way too. I prefer to use the fat pads that are right there during surgery. This can also be done with no external scar.

I hope this info helps.

[ruinedmylife]

I had fat injected under my lower eyelid. It is now lumpy bumpy. I just want to be back to my original self. what can I do to fix this. I do not want to return to this plastic surgeon I dont trust him and he was pushy to begin with. He promised that he had done this often which was a lie. I have visited other plastic surgeons and they are not familiar with this complication. One told me to undergo lower lid blepharoplasty and have it removed. Has anyone out there been through this and had corrective surgery. Did it work and has it worked? I am not my usual self and no longer attend social activities.
Thanks.

[zepme]

I spent about 3000.00 over a period of 8 months on fat injections along my jawline after a ps used Smartlipo to lessen and tightened my jowl area. I should have left it alone but was trying to stop the jowling before it getting too bad. She left me with indentations along both sides of my jawline. I didn't want to go back to her so I found a dermatologist in my area that had experience with fat injections. After going through a 4 2-month intervals, thinking I was having some results and him assuring me I would have some improvement at the very least, I realized it was just a waste of money. I waited this last time and let it go for about 2 1/2 months and sure enough, the contour uneveness is back to how it was when i started.

In my opinion, fat injections are just temporary just as a filler would be.